Though I’m a Homebody, I Found Myself in a Dark Captive Genre

Clip-clop.

The steady sound of hoofbeats echoed around me.

My body swayed in rhythm, signaling that I must be lying down somewhere.

As I became aware of my surroundings, my eyes snapped open.

“Ugh…”

I was still inside the carriage, traveling with the Duke.

But… why did my body feel so heavy?

After struggling to clear my blurred vision and sit up, I winced at the throbbing pain in my head, like the aftermath of a terrible hangover.

Dim darkness filled the carriage, likely due to the blackout curtains covering the small windows.

Yawn.

“You’re awake?”

A deep voice suddenly spoke beside me, just as I stretched my aching body.

“…Ah!”

Across from me sat the Duke, completely silent until now.

I had thought I was alone in the carriage, so I sheepishly wiped the corners of my mouth and nodded.

But… he looked a little tired? Had he not slept well?

‘Hmm?’

When my eyes met the Duke’s, I froze awkwardly.

‘Why does his gaze seem so… soft?’

Had he always looked at me with such kindness?

I didn’t think this was a man capable of showing such tenderness. All I’d ever seen from him were cynical smirks or looks of disdain, so this was disconcerting.

In fact, when he noticed me staring at him suspiciously, he even averted his eyes in embarrassment.

…Maybe I should just get to the point.

“Um… why am I here? We were in Trega Village, weren’t we?”

Ah, right.

My memories became clearer.

I vividly remembered the roast duck incident at the restaurant and falling asleep after washing up.

But the space I was in now was unmistakably a moving carriage.

What had happened in between?

The answer came soon enough.

“Seems like you don’t remember. You inhaled a disorienting scent.”

A disorienting scent?

“…A disorienting scent?”

“It was in the travel guide. You were supposed to leave the window open.”

“Uh… right.”

Now that he mentioned it, there had been a note about that:

Be thorough with door locks, but leave windows slightly open for ventilation. Dust accumulation in old inns necessitates fresh airflow.

Oh, no.

I vaguely remembered it now. My jaw went slack.

“I… must’ve forgotten. But I thought that was just because of dust…”

Hearing my flustered explanation, the Duke sighed lightly.

“We had orders to apprehend a gang luring travelers into abductions and robberies with palace invitations.”

“Really?”

“And you, Princess, had a minor mishap during the process.”

As he explained the situation, the scattered pieces of the puzzle began to come together.

So, it had all been a setup.

Still perplexed, I asked again, “Then why was I given that guide?”

“I thought you liked that sort of thing. Was I wrong?”

What?

So, because I liked mysteries, I’d hidden critical mission details in the guide?

I couldn’t help but gape in disbelief.

“I mean, I do like mysteries, but this sounded like an important mission!”

“Princess.”

A chuckle escaped the Duke.

“We didn’t consider only your tastes.”

“Oh…”

Then what?

He smiled at my flustered expression.

“Anyway, it was a secret order from the Crown Prince. Though you’re disguised as my distant relative, you’re actually Salt’s princess. And as you know, the Crown Prince seeks to subjugate Salt.”

All true.

Salt, now in a tense relationship with kletan.

If anyone found out the Duke shared the Crown Prince’s secret order with Salt’s princess, not even he could avoid punishment.

Finally, I understood why he’d gone through all this trouble.

But the Duke wasn’t done yet. He pinched his brow and scolded me.

“Yet you behaved recklessly and did everything I told you not to.”

“Well, um…”

I hadn’t meant to stand out, but things just… happened.

I began to feel guilty for possibly disrupting the mission.

Too embarrassed to apologize outright, I gave an awkward smile and mumbled, “Heh, every story needs someone like that, right?”

“…”

“…”

The silence was deafening.

“Are you serious?”

“No, I’m sorry!”

I gave in, lowering my gaze and offering a proper apology. After all, it was true I almost ruined the mission.

Luckily, the Duke didn’t seem too upset, replying in a gentle tone.

“In the end, we captured the gang and sent them to the capital.”

“Really? That’s great! And I’m even more relieved I didn’t mess it all up.”

“I wasn’t too worried. I figured you’d find a way out, Princess.”

Huh…?

Something about his words struck me.

Wait, why did he have so much faith in me?

I looked at him in surprise, but his deep green eyes held nothing but sincerity.

“Uh…”

Hold on.

Deep green eyes?

Why did that seem so familiar?

As a creeping unease rose, buried memories began surfacing.

“You were too handsome, and I just… lost my mind…”

“What?”

“I haven’t seen many men this attractive. I, uh… think you’re my type.”

The embarrassing memory hit me like a bolt of lightning. I tried to shake it from my head.

‘This memory is fake.’

There’s no way that happened.

No way I’d stare at him like that or say something resembling a confession. It had to be a distorted memory.

But then…

“…When you look at me like that, my heart races. Could you… look elsewhere?”

My words from that moment echoed clearly in my mind. The urge to fling myself out of the moving carriage overwhelmed me.

‘Oh my god, oh my god!’

Too mortified to meet his gaze, I squeezed my eyes shut and pretended to sleep.

I didn’t notice the Duke’s gaze growing warmer.

* * *

—kletan Empire, Crown Prince’s Palace.

A man, fresh from his bath and draped in a robe, paused as he noticed a shadow standing against the dim light.

Though cloaked in the darkness of the night, the loosened golden hair cascading down was clearly visible.

At the same time, droplets of water slid down his sharply defined abs, sculpted as if by a master craftsman.

“Your Highness. The Northern Wolf has arrived in the capital.”

Crimson eyes, sharp as blades, turned toward the bowing figure.

“Is that so?”

A soft, stifled chuckle escaped the man’s lips as he resumed walking, humming almost like a song.

“It’s been a while since I last saw him. By the way, what about that matter?”

“…It failed. My apologies, Your Highness.”

“And the cleanup?”

“I sent them all to ‘those people.’”

“Well done.”

His flawlessly straight fingers reached for a bottle displayed on a nearby shelf.

The man, Raiden, savored the fragrance of the liquor for a moment before casually pouring it into a glass and continuing.

“I never expected it to succeed. If he’d fallen for those small fry’s tricks, I’d have been disappointed instead.”

This was merely a gift for that half-blooded vermin.

A warning he sent every time Kayan Blaire, who should have been hidden far from his sight, dared step into the capital.

Clink.

Raiden drained the fiery, bitter liquor in one go and placed the empty glass down with a decisive thud.

“They say vermin thrive in harsh conditions. Let’s see how that bastard has changed.”

A smirk—completely out of place on the beautiful prince’s face—spread across his lips.